


ready to call this love

by soulfriend



Category: New Mutants (Comics), X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: Dancing, Feelings Realization, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, Nostalgia, Tension, Yearning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-17
Updated: 2020-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:53:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22298119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulfriend/pseuds/soulfriend
Summary: Krakoa seemed to be having a lot of parties lately, and Roberto couldn’t tell if the fervor was because of the recent successful founding of (another) mutant nation or if this was just how things were going to be from now on. He really couldn’t complain now that Sam was here.roberto and sam dance. realizations are had.
Relationships: Roberto da Costa/Sam Guthrie
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	ready to call this love

Roberto looked proudly at the scene around him. Krakoa seemed to be having a lot of parties lately, and he couldn’t tell if the fervor was because of the recent successful founding of (another) mutant nation or if this was just how things were going to be from now on. He really couldn’t complain either way.

He glanced to his side, where his best friend was standing, hands on his hips, similarly surveying the crowd. Roberto looked down, hiding his gigantic smile. He  _ really  _ couldn’t complain now that Sam was here.

“What is it?” Roberto held back a laugh. Nothing got past Sam.

“Nothing.” Bobby paused. “Wanna dance?”

“Aw, ‘Berto, I mean…” It was Sam’s turn to smile at the ground. “You know how me and dancing get along…”

“Yeah, I know, like Cyclops and fun. C’mon, dummy.” Roberto held out his hand, and Sam laughed, taking it.

Roberto was relieved to see Sam in a relatively good mood; he’d been pretty distraught the previous week after Izzy had left-- although, if he was being honest, he’d seen it coming from a mile away. Every time he’d seen them in a room together, Izzy had been ordering Sam around and generally failing to recognize that a relationship goes two ways. Roberto had felt how strained Sam had been whenever she was around, and it made him proud to see his friend moving on. Sam deserved so much better. Sam deserved the world, in fact.

Roberto nodded his head to the beat, tugging on Sam to do the same. Sam smiled at him again, and Roberto’s heart jumped. He tried his best to ignore it, just like he always did, taking Sam’s free hand in his and moving their arms back and forth.

“See, Sam? Dancing. Fun.” Sam laughed, and Roberto beamed. Jesus, he couldn’t stop smiling. Sam was starting to get a little more into it, coming out of his bashful shell and moving his feet back and forth.

“Uh, you sure?” Sam adjusted his grip on Bobby’s hands, and his eyes flicked up. Bobby held his gaze for perhaps a second too long and hurriedly looked away, swallowing. Sam got out a strained laugh, and Roberto felt the familiar unspoken agreement between them to never talk about it. This was the dance they did.

Roberto opened his mouth to say something-- exactly what, he didn’t know-- when the song changed to a loud, fast-paced pop song. Sam looked at him expectantly, because of course he’d noticed, so Roberto put on his best smile and said, “Oh,  _ now _ we’re talking!”

Roberto felt the beat of the song course through his entire body, running off a mixture of happiness and nervous energy and something he couldn’t quite put a finger on. His enthusiasm must have rubbed off on Sam by now, because in no time they were shaking and bouncing all across the dance floor. God, he’d missed this.

Roberto took Sam’s hand in his again and went in for a spin. Sam laughed, twirling the shorter man underneath his arm. Roberto spun a little too fast, consequently tripping over his own feet and barrelling right into Sam.

“Oh my God-” Sam took several compensating steps backwards, somehow managing to keep them both on their feet. Roberto’s head cleared of the panic and he saw his hands splayed out across Sam’s chest and felt Sam’s hand on his arm and his other hand on his waist.

Roberto wanted to scream.

The music changed back to a more low-key synth track, and Sam withdrew his hand from Roberto’s waist but slid his other one down Roberto’s arm, taking his hand again.

“Hey, Bobby?” Roberto looked up, making eye contact with Sam. “Y’know, you’ve said a lot that you missed me, and what with escaping space jail and my wife and my kid, I haven’t really gotten the chance to say… I missed you too. A lot.” Sam looked away, bashful.

“Sam, I…” Roberto tried not to get choked up. There were too many emotions running through him right now, although if he had to put a positive spin on it, none of them were necessarily bad. “It means a lot. I just… miss the way things used to be, you know?” Sam raised an eyebrow, inviting Roberto to go on.

“I miss when we were kids, I miss when it was just us. And I know not everything used to be perfect, but I’ve been so worried lately that I’m not enough for you. I guess I’ve just missed my best friend, and I don’t want to stop being yours.” Roberto swallowed. “Your best friend, I mean.”

“Aw, ‘Berto. C’mere.” Sam sighed and pulled Roberto in for a hug. Bobby melted into him, letting Sam hold him tight, even if it was just for a split second. He breathed in his familiar scent, tucking his face into his friend’s shoulder. Sam’s hand gently rubbed his back, and the two stayed like that for a moment, swaying to the music. “You’ll never not be my best friend. You don’t need to worry about that.”

At the end of the song, Sam pulled back, still keeping a loose grip on Bobby’s hand. “I, uh. Should probably go. Need to take Josh off Dani’s hands.”

‘Berto smiled, not making eye contact. “Yeah, okay.” Sam ran his thumb over Bobby’s before letting go of his hand. Bobby wanted to to to the snack bar, but he found himself transfixed, frozen to the dance floor as he watched Sam go.

* * *

_ Oh my God. Oh my God. _

Sam didn’t remember the walk back from the party to his apartment. One moment he was letting go of Roberto’s hand and the next he was on his couch, head spinning.

“Sam? Is that you?” came Dani’s voice from the other room.

“Yeah,” Sam called back, letting out a deep breath he didn’t know he’d been holding in. He heard Dani’s light footsteps approaching him from behind and turned to meet her gaze.

Dani stared at him for a moment, then frowned. “Everything okay, Sam?”

“No. Yeah. Everything’s fine.” Sam shook his head quickly. “How’s Josh been?”

“Rambunctious. Takes after someone I know,” Dani said, a sly smile creeping onto her face.

Sam shrugged, laughing. “Hey. I was never the responsible one.”

They were silent for a moment, remembering. Sam felt a pang in his chest that he hadn’t felt for quite a while. He guessed that was what Roberto was talking about; it was hard not to feel nostalgic about the old days of the team, especially with seven of them reunited. Hard not to long for the days when it had been him and Roberto against the world. Before they had gone from SamandRoberto to Sam and Roberto.

Dani cleared her throat. Sam jolted. “Anyways. I was just able to get him to quiet down for the night. You’re welcome.”

Sam got up off the couch to give Dani a hug. “Thanks for watching him for the night, Dani. Means a lot.” They broke apart, and Dani shrugged.

“You know I’m not really one for parties. Your son also happens to be adorable. I see this as a win-win.” Dani rose her fist for a fist bump, and Sam happily obliged.

“Have a good night, Dani.”

“You too, Sam. You know I’m right next door if you need anything.” Right. If there was one thing Sam wasn’t a huge fan of on Krakoa, it was that even when you weren’t on missions, you were surrounded by your teammates 24/7. Thanks, Sextant.

The door closed behind Dani and Sam threw himself onto the couch with a melodramatic sigh. It was like he was a kid again, daydreaming about intergalactic rockstar Lila Cheney or crushing on the girl in whatever sci-fi novel he was reading that week, except the person he was now having infuriating thoughts about just so happened to be his lifelong best friend.

Sam heard the door of the apartment next to him slam shut.

This person also just so happened to live right next to him.

_ Of course. Of fucking course. _ Sam felt his face get hot, and in that moment, he was glad that he’d never had any problems controlling his powers. Why was he so angry? If what he was feeling was affection for Roberto, why did he want to punch that oh-so-familiar smug grin right off his unfairly attractive face? Why, then, did he also long for the feeling of Roberto’s hand in his, Roberto’s arms around his neck, Roberto’s lips on his?

If there was anything Sam Guthrie had learned through his myriad endeavors, love was a complicated thing.

In retrospect, all of Roberto’s past behavior made perfect sense. The extravagant vacations by the beach, the arguably unnecessary “donations” out of the da Costa fortune, the gentle touches on the shoulder or cheek. It had just taken him leaving his best friend back on Earth to go elope with his space wife and then having said space wife abandon him in the name of intergalactic politics for him to get it through his thick skull.

Roberto da Costa was in love with him. How long he’d been in love with him, and how long he’d been aware of it, Sam didn’t know. Hell, maybe he  _ still _ wasn’t aware of it. Sam chuckled to himself. Knowing Roberto, he wouldn’t be surprised.

The sharp knock on the door jolted Sam out of his stupor. “Hey, uh, Sam. Can we talk?” He didn’t even have to ask who it was. Sam pushed himself up and strode to the door. Taking a deep breath, he opened it.

Roberto made eye contact for a split second before dropping his gaze to the floor. “Hey.”

“Hi.” An awkward pause. “You wanna come in?”

Roberto gave a nervous laugh. “Yeah, yeah.” As his friend stepped through the door, Sam felt his heart rate increase tenfold. He’d never seen Roberto like this, and in all their years of friendship, they’d never been so tense. The rhythm of their interactions had always seemed to unfold naturally. Now it seemed so manufactured, foreign.

Sam closed the door behind Roberto, who ducked his head to get out of the way of Sam’s arm. Sam motioned in the direction of the couch. “C’mon. Sit.”

As soon as they were settled, Roberto spoke. “Look, Sam… about tonight… I…” He swallowed. Paused. Took a deep breath. “Sam, I love you.” Roberto let out the breath. “I have for a while, and I know you probably don’t feel the same way, and you’re probably still dealing with Izzy, but it’s been so long and-”

“‘Berto.” Sam put a hand on Roberto’s knee. “I know.”

Roberto looked confused. He looked like he was about to cry, and Sam’s heart ached. “Huh?”

“‘Berto, I know the way you feel about me, but it’s only ‘cause I feel it too.” Sam’s heart raced, and he tried to ignore the heat in his cheeks.

“You do?”

Sam laughed, shaking his head. “C’mere, dummy.” He pulled Roberto into his arms for the second time that night, this time gentler, more protective. He felt wetness on his shoulder, soaking through his t-shirt.

“Hey, everything’s all right,” Sam said. Roberto tucked his head under Sam’s chin, laughing.

“Oh my God, Sam,” he mumbled. “How did it take us this long?” Sam didn’t reply, just laughed with him, running his hand comfortingly over Bobby’s back. They stayed like that for a moment, and Sam relaxed back into the couch, feeling Bobby melt with him. He closed his eyes, breathing in the familiar scent.

“Hey, Sam,” Roberto said, breaking the silence. He sat up, and Sam reluctantly let go of him.

“What is it?”

Sam felt Roberto’s hand slide into his. “Can I kiss you?”

Sam laughed again. His heart bloomed in his chest. “Yeah.”

Roberto slid his other hand around Sam’s neck. Sam closed his eyes, and Roberto’s soft lips came to meet his. ‘Berto held the kiss for a few seconds; it was innocent, chaste, but Sam could feel everything Roberto was trying to tell him. Years of longing, jealousy, loneliness, relief.

He felt them break apart, but Sam kept his eyes shut. His neck was cold where ‘Berto’s hand came away.

“Everything okay?” came Roberto’s voice.

Sam opened his eyes and pulled Roberto close again. He had no idea where all this was going to take them, but he was willing to try. Sam pressed a soft kiss into Roberto’s hair, and he felt the other man sigh. Sam smiled.

“Yeah, ‘Berto. Everything’s perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr: [@samberto](https://samberto.tumblr.com) :)


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